Club drugs

'Club Drugs' is a general term that describes a range of drugs that are usually associated more with the recreational drug taking scene in the UK.

‘Club’ or ‘party’ drugs are not a new concept as people have been combining various mind-altering substances, music and social gatherings for a very long time. Some of the drugs currently used in the clubbing scene are also not particularly new. Drugs such as ecstasy, methamphetamine and mephedrone were first developed in the first half of the 20th century.

However, what is different in some of today’s clubbing scenes seems to be the combinations of drugs being used, such as methamphetamine and GBL, or the use of these drugs at sex parties.

There are also a number of drugs being used that have not had a long history of being used recreationally, such as ketamine. This means we are only just discovering some of the long term health problems such as ketamine bladder or coma associated with GBL use.

The way that drugs are being sold on the internet has also changed the recreational drug market. Nearly one new substance a week appears on the internet, some of these may be more dangerous that illegal drugs, others less so. The reality is that because they are so new, we don’t know what the short or long term dangers associated with these drugs may be.